By James Anyanzwa
Finance Minister Robinson Njeru Githae Wednesday maintained a hard-line stance over the on-going teachers’ strike saying the Government did not have even a single cent to pay the teachers.
Githae who was furious over blames that he had snubbed a meeting called to resolve the teachers saga said he was ready to be sacrificed, condemned or even be abused but would not rescind his decision in the interest of the 40 million Kenyans, the economy and the country at large.
Githae said he couldn’t compromise the welfare of Kenyans as a finance minister by taking a populist decision.
In addition, he questioned the rationale behind teachers calling for strikes during election years.
“I don’t want to enter into a popularity contest but I want to do what is right for the country. If there is nothing in the budget there is nothing we can do,” Githae told reporters at the Treasury buildings in Nairobi, Wednesday.
“For the sake of the county, I’m prepared to be sacrificed, to be condemned and to accept abuses hurled at me.”
Githae said the teachers’ demands are unrealistic and detrimental to the country’s fragile economy, which has been staggering below five per cent for the last five years.
He said funding teacher’s salary demands would mean increasing taxes for the ordinary Kenyans and particularly income tax from the current 30 per cent to 60 per cent.
He said teachers demands also imply that the Government suspends development projects such as road construction, schools, bridges and hospitals in order to cater for their wage bills.
Githae added that it would be ‘irresponsible’ for him as a finance minister to borrow from the development partners to pay for the teachers’ monthly wages.
This, he said, would be ‘unsustainable” adding that “at the moment, the average wage of the public sector for the first time now is higher than the private sector.”
